37 Best universities for Liberal Arts & Social Sciences in Malaysia

Updated: March 15, 2026

Ranking by academic field

Below is a list of best universities in Malaysia ranked based on their research performance in Liberal Arts & Social Sciences. A graph of 4.32M citations received by 319K academic papers made by 37 universities in Malaysia was used to calculate publications' ratings, which then were adjusted for release dates and added to final scores.

We don't distinguish between undergraduate and graduate programs nor do we adjust for current majors offered. You can find information about granted degrees on a university page but always double-check with the university website.

1. University of Malaya

Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#39 in Asia

#389 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 34%
Founded: 1905

2. National University of Malaysia

Malaysia | Bangi

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#49 in Asia

#438 in the World

Enrollment: 28,776
Founded: 1970

3. University of Science, Malaysia

Malaysia | George Town

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#77 in Asia

#554 in the World

Founded: 1969

4. Putra Malaysia University

Malaysia | Serdang

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#80 in Asia

#558 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 40%
Enrollment: 26,000
Founded: 1973

5. University of Technology Malaysia

Malaysia | Johor Bahru

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#82 in Asia

#575 in the World

Founded: 1904

6. MARA University of Technology

Malaysia | Shah Alam

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#95 in Asia

#620 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 100%
Founded: 1956

7. International Islamic University Malaysia

Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#173 in Asia

#914 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 30%
Enrollment: 3,773
Founded: 1983

8. Northern University of Malaysia

Malaysia | Sintok

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#200 in Asia

#996 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 56%
Founded: 1984

9. University of Malaysia Sabah

Malaysia | Kota Kinabalu

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#342 in Asia

#1416 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Founded: 1994

10. Multimedia University

Malaysia | Cyberjaya

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#346 in Asia

#1424 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 80%
Founded: 1996

11. Tun Hussein Onn University of Malaysia

Malaysia | Batu Pahat

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#395 in Asia

#1568 in the World

Founded: 2000

12. Sultan Idris University of Education

Malaysia | Tanjong Malim

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#407 in Asia

#1594 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 71%
Founded: 1922

13. University of Malaysia, Sarawak

Malaysia | Kota Samarahan

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#440 in Asia

#1675 in the World

Founded: 1992

14. University of Malaysia, Pahang

Malaysia | Kuantan

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#447 in Asia

#1691 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 77%
Founded: 2002

15. Petronas Technology University

Malaysia | Tronoh

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#448 in Asia

#1693 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 10%
Founded: 1997

16. UCSI University

Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#545 in Asia

#1967 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 80%
Founded: 1986

17. Islamic Science University of Malaysia

Malaysia | Nilai

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#570 in Asia

#2034 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 50%
Founded: 1998

18. Tenaga National University

Malaysia | Kajang

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#577 in Asia

#2055 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 50%
Founded: 1997

19. Darul Iman University, Malaysia

Malaysia | Kuala Terengganu

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#579 in Asia

#2057 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 50%
Founded: 2005

20. University of Malaysia, Terengganu

Malaysia | Kuala Terengganu

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#592 in Asia

#2083 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Founded: 1979

21. Tunku Abdul Rahman University

Malaysia | Kajang

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#603 in Asia

#2107 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Founded: 2002

22. University of Malaysia Perlis

Malaysia | Arau

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#671 in Asia

#2248 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 100%
Enrollment: 11,216
Male:Female: 56:44
Founded: 2001

23. Sunway University

Malaysia | Petaling Jaya

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#785 in Asia

#2521 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Founded: 1987

24. Technical University of Malaysia, Melaka

Malaysia | Ayer Keroh

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#801 in Asia

#2550 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 30%
Enrollment: 12,077
Founded: 2000

25. University of Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#948 in Asia

#2877 in the World

Founded: 2002

26. University of Malaysia, Kelantan

Malaysia | Pengkalan Chepa

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#972 in Asia

#2922 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 20%
Founded: 2006

27. International Medical University

Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#1033 in Asia

#3056 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 66%
Founded: 1992

28. Taylor's University

Malaysia | Subang Jaya

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#1147 in Asia

#3301 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Founded: 1969

29. Management and Science University

Malaysia | Shah Alam

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#1164 in Asia

#3329 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 87%
Founded: 2001

30. National Defence University of Malaysia

Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#1328 in Asia

#3690 in the World

Founded: 1995

31. INTI International University

Malaysia | Nilai

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#1574 in Asia

#4178 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 70%
Enrollment: 4,202
Founded: 2010

32. HELP University

Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#1638 in Asia

#4303 in the World

Founded: 1986

33. Tun Abdul Razak University

Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#1745 in Asia

#4581 in the World

Founded: 1997

34. University of Selangor

Malaysia | Bestari Jaya

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#1764 in Asia

#4616 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 100%
Enrollment: 5,312
Founded: 1999

35. AIMST University

Malaysia | Bedong

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#1965 in Asia

#5038 in the World

Enrollment: 2,436
Founded: 2001

36. Limkokwing University of Creative Technology

Malaysia | Cyberjaya

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#2056 in Asia

#5237 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 87%
Enrollment: 30,000
Founded: 1991

37. Asia e University

Malaysia | Subang Jaya

For Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

#2429 in Asia

#6108 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 87%
Founded: 2006

The best cities to study Liberal Arts & Social Sciences in Malaysia based on the number of universities and their ranks are Kuala Lumpur, Bangi, George Town, and Serdang.